Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said Daesh's presence in the country would be terminated by next year.

December 29, 2015 17:58 IST

Terrorists planned attack in Belgium on New Year's eve: Two people were arrested in Belgium over the last two days for plotting to carry out terror strikes in Brussels on 31 December.

The Belgian Police recovered Isis propaganda material in the raids, though they did not find weapons or explosives, according to reports.

The terrorists had identified several symbolic places in Brussels as targets for attacks, AFP reported.

Belgium is on high alert since the attacks in Paris last month, as some of the suspects are believed to have entered Brussels after the attacks.

However, the latest arrests were not connected to the Paris attacks, said federal prosecutors reportedly.

Isis will be 'terminated' in 2016: Following the recapture of the city of Ramadi from Isis, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on state television Daesh's presence in the country would be terminated by next year.

"If 2015 was a year of liberation, 2016 will be the year of great victories, terminating the presence of Daesh (Isis) in Iraq and Mesopotamia," al-Abadi said in the televised address.

Iraqi forces declared on Monday Ramadi had been freed seven months after it was captured by Isis militants in May.

The Iraqi prime minister said they would work to liberate Mosul, one of the first cities seized by the Sunni militants and from where Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared the formation of the Islamic State caliphate.

"We are coming to liberate Mosul and it will be the fatal and final blow to Daesh," al-Abadi said.

Afghan Police refuse to return to fight Taliban: The Afghan Police have reportedly refused to return to the Sangin district, where government forces have been fighting the Taliban over the past several weeks.

Karim Atal, the director of the Helmand provincial council, said on Tuesday the police claimed the Afghan government has not yet sent reinforcements, the Associated Press reported.

The official said the Afghan armed forces and the police have decided to remain in their base in Sangin. "That's the only way they can claim the district has not fallen," Atal told the Associated Press.

There have been conflicting reports on how much of the Sangin district and other areas in the Helmand province the Taliban have seized.

Saudi Arabia jails Isis supporter for 19 years: A Saudi Arabia court sentenced a man said to be involved in terror cases and who had claimed support to the Islamic State to 19 years in jail.

The man had also been found guilty of "defaming" some officials by accusing them of following blasphemous beliefs, Saudi Gazette reported.

The convict will also be banned from travelling outside the country for 19 years after he is released from jail.